Apparatus for forming rope mats



- July 3, 1928.

L. A. DENNEY APPARATUS FOR FORMING ROPE MATS Filed Dec. 6, 1926 Patented July 3, 1928.

UNITED STATES LAWRENCE A. DENNEY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

APPARATUS FOR FORMING ROPE MATS.

Application filed December 6, 1926. Serial No. 152,820.

This invention relates to apparatus for forming woven mats from rope for use in bowling alleys and other purposes, and has for one of its objects the provision of mechanism which will facilitate the formation of the warp strands in proper position for receiving the weft strands.

A further objectis to provide a support for dowels or shed forming bars which will hold the dowels firmly in position while the warp strands are woven about the dowels, but which will permit easy removal of the dowels from the support with the warp strands in position about the dowels.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following description.

The invention is exemplified in the combination and arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawing and described in the following specification, and it is more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a dowel rack or support showing one embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on line 22 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary top plan View of 30 the clamping bars showing one of the dowels held between the bars.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing, the numerals and 11 designate upright posts or standards rigidly supported in position in any suitable manner. A cross-bar or timber 12 is supported between the posts 10 and 11 in fixed position. A clamping bar or plate 13 is hinged or pivoted at 14 to the bar 10 so that when the plate 13 is closed its rear face will fit against the front face of the bar 12. An arm 15 is secured to the lower edge of the timber 12 in position to support the free end of the clamping plate 13. Any suitable form of latch 16 may be employed for holding the plate 13 in its closed position. A series of circular openings 17 are provided along the contact plane of the bars 12 and 13, each of the openings beingformed, half in one bar and half in the other. In forming the openings, the timber may be clamped together and the holes bored along their contact plane. As shown in Fig. 2, the openings 17 do not extend entirely through the clamping bars, but a supporting shelf or shoulder 18 is provided with each of the clamping bars at the bottom of the opening 17. Dowels or shed forming bars 19 are positioned in the openings 17 and are held in place by the clamping plates. The bars 19 are preferably slightl greater in diameter than the openings 17 so that when the plates 12 and 13 are locked together they will firmly clamp the bars 19 and hold them in rigid position. In placing the bars 19 in the openings 17 the clamping plate 13 is left open a very slight amount so that the opemngs 17 will be sufficiently loose to permit the bars 19 to drop into place, but the plates 12 and 13 will be close enough together so that the shoulders 18 will prevent the bars from dropping through the openings. The clamping plate 13 is then moved to its completely closed position which firmly locks the bars 19 in place.

The rope for forming the warp strands of the mat is then woven in and out between the shed forming bars 19. Each strand passes about opposite sides of adjacent bars and the alternate strands are disposed at opposite sides of each bar. In weaving the rope about the bars 19 it is not necessary to carry the end of the rope in and out between the bars, but the rope may be dropped in from the top, thus facilitating the weaving of the rope about the bars.

After the warp strands have been woven to a sufiicient height upon the upstanding bars, the clamping plate 13 may be swung forwardly into the position shown in broken lines in Fig. 1. This will free the clamped ends of the bars 19 and permit the entire web to be lifted from the rack. The shed forming bars or dowels are then withdrawn, one at a time, endwise from the sheds formed in the warp rope and the weft strands are threaded through the sheds formed by the bars, each strand being inserted in the shed formed by the bar after the bar has been withdrawn. In this way the mat is formed with sheds in the warp strands and with the weft strands extending through the sheds, the weft strands being substantially straight, while the warp strands are looped or curved to form the sheds for the weft strands. By firmly clamping the shed forming bars in rigid position during the weaving of the warp strands uniformity of the sheds is produced so that a better and more uniform product is secured than is possible where the bars are permitted to stand loosely in sockets which do not rigidly clamp the ends of the bars. By having socket mem bers which permit opening of the sockets to release the bars it is possible to firmly clamp them in position to secure the advantages of rigidly held shed forming bars. It Will be understood that various modifications and changes in details of construetion may be made within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

vI claim: g

1. Mechanism for use in Weaving rope mats comprising a plurality of shed forming bars, and a clamping device arranged to grip the ends of said bars to hold said bars rigidly I in spaced parallel relatlon, .sard clamping device being releasable to permit removal of said bars therefrom.

25A device for use in weaving rope mats comprising a supporting member having spaced parallel grooves in one face thereof, a second member having spaced parallel grooves in one face'thereof in position to register with the grooves in said first-named member, a hingefor supporting said secondnamed member in position to swing toward and away from saidffirst-named member, shed forming bars adapted to be clamped-in the registering grooves of said members, and means for holding. said members together with said bars clamped in said grooves. V

3. A device for use in weaving rope mats comprising a supporting member having spaced parallel semicylindrical grooves in 'one'face thereof, a second member having complementary grooves-in one face thereof arranged to register with the grooves in said first-named member to form substantially cylindrical sockets, said grooves being terminated short of the lower faces of said members to-provide closures for the bottoms of said sockets, shed forming barsadapted to vbe held in said sockets, a hinge support for one of said-members to permit relative movement of said members for opening said sockets, and a locking device for holding said members together with said sockets closed.

4. Adevice for use in weaving rope mats comprising a pair of members disposed face tojface and having cylindrical sockets formed along the contacting faces of said members, each socketbeing formed part in one member andpart in the other and shed forming bars of slightly greater diameter than said sockets so that when said members are clamped together with said bars disposed in: said sockets, said bars will be firmly clamped in-said sockets. V

A device for use in weaving rope mats comprising a pair of spaced supports,.a horizontal member fixed to said supports, a second member hinged to one of said supportsland movable into and out of contact with said first-named member, said members "havingcylindrical sockets formed therein along the contacting'faces thereof, each socket being disposed part in one member and part in the other so that when said hingedmemb'er'is swung away from said fixed member said sockets will be. opened, a support for the free end of said hinged member, and shed forming bars of slightly greater diameter than said sockets arranged to be'rigidly clamped in said sockets when said members are held together to close said sockets.

6. A device for use in weaving rope mats comprising a pair of spaced upright supports, a horizontally extendingmember mounted on said supports, a second member hinged to one of said supports to swing into and out of engagement with said first-named member, said members having sockets formed therein along the contacting faces thereof, said sockets being closed at their lower ends, a support for the free end of saidhinged member along which said free end is movable into and out of position adjacent-said fixed support, means for locking said hinged member in contact withsaidfixed member, and a plurality of shed forming bars of slightly greater diameter than said sockets a so that said bars will ,be rigidly clamped in said sockets when disposed thereiirwith said hinged bar clamped to said fixed bar:

7. it device for use in weaving rope mats, comprising a bar, means'for supporting said bar in substantially horizontal position, said i bar having approximately semicylindrical substantially parallel spaced upright grooves in one face thereof, said grooves terminating abovefthe lower face-of sai dbar toiprovide bottom closures for said grooves, shed forming pins for engaging said grooves, saidpin's being of a size to project/ laterally from said grooves beyond the. face ofsaifd bar when in place in said grooves, aclamping bar for engaging the projecting portions of said pins to hold said pins in said grooves, the adjacent faces of said. barsbeing spaced apart by said pins when said pins are clamped by saidbars, and releasable means for locking said bars in clamping position on said pins; In testimony whereof Lha-ve signed my name-to this ;-specification on this 26th day of November, 1926. i 

